Because John Cena was consistently victorious and never made anyone feel inferior, there was a protracted stretch of time when a small contingent of WWE fans disliked seeing him.
This made people angry because they felt that Cena was going out of his way to undermine talent, particularly emerging superstars who might have gained momentum from defeating the biggest name in the promotion.
Cena discussed the accusation that he had buried other wrestlers when speaking on Busted Open Radio (h/t Colin Tessier of WrestleZone.com):
“While I was in the sauce, the reputation I had was that I buried talent because I put my whole heart into this. I spent a day talking about our why with Austin Theory, sitting with him for nearly ten hours total. That is what I would do for everyone. I enjoy it. My entire being is invested. They didn’t take that energy with them after they became me, though; instead, I handed it to the next guy. So who comes next? It was, and Kevin Owens is now in charge. Come on in, Kevin. We’re going to sit down and talk for the next two weeks. Then, we’ll put our best foot forward by trying some wild things and seeing what sticks. Kevin is through. Sami, no issue.
Over the course of his career, Cena made a lot of dubious booking choices, but it doesn’t necessarily imply he was in command of them.
Cena was elevated to the top by Vince McMahon, who also ensured that no one else could compete with him. At SummerSlam 2010, McMahon’s eagerness to advance Cena at the expense of others was most egregiously displayed.
A seven-on-seven elimination tag match between the Nexus team and a squad made up primarily of newly signed WWE superstars who were attempting to make a name for themselves served as the program’s main event. Wade Barrett and Justin Gabriel were defeated, resulting in Cena’s side winning with him as the lone survivor.
Despite having excellent periods in the WWE, Barrett and Gabriel were never promoted above the mid-card. Although it wouldn’t have been necessary, defeating Cena on that show wouldn’t have prevented them from becoming main-event stars.
Whatever one may think of John Cena’s reign as champion, it was a vast improvement over Triple H’s automatic awarding of the world heavyweight championship.
Throughout his career, Cena has pushed people aside. At WrestleMania, the 16-time world champion recently fell to Austin Theory. When they were in need of victories, he suffered notable defeats to Kevin Owens, CM Punk, AJ Styles, and Daniel Bryan.
One advantage of Triple H overseeing WWE creative is the latitude he will give superstars to develop their feuds, including the freedom to provide feedback on promos.
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful reports that certain wrestlers “have been given more flexibility in their promos” lately (h/t Felix Upton of RingsideNews.com).
Sapp specifically mentioned the Karrion Kross-Shinsuke Nakamura feud as an instance of a program where both superstars were permitted to use the microphone in distinct ways.
The WWE’s promos were terrible for a considerable amount of time. They were only cliches and poor jokes that appeared to be intended to amuse Vince McMahon only; other people did not find them amusing.
Unquestionably, after Triple H was appointed chief creative officer, things got much better. Even while some of the old promotions continue to make an appearance—more so recently since McMahon joined the organization again—the situation is still largely good.
It’s smart business to let the celebrities, who undoubtedly put a lot of time and effort into their personas, say things that fit them and indicate the direction a feud will take. When everything is scripted by one group of writers, it is much simpler for people to get invested in what is happening as compared to when everyone sounds exactly the same.
WWE had to revise its roster depth charts about a month after the 2023 draft because so many superstars switched brands and received new places in the overall roster hierarchy.
The New Day, Alpha Academy, Braun Strowman and Ricochet, and Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn are the top male babyface teams on Raw, according to a leaked depth chart for the tag-team division obtained by PWInsider.com (h/t Upton).
The heel groups for the red brand are led by Judgment Day, Imperium, The Viking Raiders, Maximum Male Models, Los Lotharios, and Indus Sher.
The top four male babyface teams on SmackDown are The O.C., Street Profits, Latino World Order, and the Brawling Brutes. The Usos, Pretty Deadly, and Hit Row are the top heel teams.
It comes as no surprise that Owens and Zayn are the top babyface team on Raw given that they are currently the undisputed tag champs and one of the best performers on Raw.
How long Owens and Zayn retain the titles will be an interesting question to answer. At Night of Champions, they will defend their titles against Reigns and Solo Sikoa. Sikoa taking the fall for Owens and Zayn to win the championship is one option, but WWE doesn’t like Roman losing.
The Usos might have a role in that battle because there have been significant hints that they—or at least Jey—will soon be expelled from the Bloodline.
